I’m surprised Matt Holliday is heading to Oakland; I actually expected the slugger would end up in Philly replacing Pat the Bat.

That being said, Burrell is just 31-years-old, and appears to have several more seasons like this one ahead of him (.250, 33 HR, 86 RBIs).

Burrell isn’t the best defensively but, it’s hard to knock a guy who just helped his team win the World Series, so why rush to get rid of him?

On the other hand, Colorado’s pitch to Holliday of a four-year, $72-million extension with a fifth-year player option at $12 million isn’t even close to what the slugger will get come free agency after 2009.

Besides the money issues, Holliday was also discouraged to remain in Denver after the Rockies dismissed Holliday’s close friend and strength coach Brad Andress.

Oakland seems a long shot to sign Holliday to a long-term deal as well meaning Billy Beane will use the left fielder as a trading chip come July.

It’s another crafty move by Beane who’ll more than likely spin Holliday into a package of talented prospects similar to the Dan Haren deal with Arizona.